21.11.12

A Simple Craft for Kids - Angry Birds or Any Comic or Game Character!

By Ed

When Angry Birds Star Wars was released it was a VERY big deal in our house. Other than buying the app the minute it was released (and then the kids paying for the "Path of the Jedi" upgrade out of their allowance), there has been some interest in the in-app advertised figures/toys based on the game.

Our kids now know that when they see a relatively simple toy, they don't need to buy it - they can make it. Enter Sculpey - a totally great, bake in the oven clay.

Sculpey seems more resilient to drops than the bake-clays that I remember from my youth and it is easy to work with. Here's how we made Angry Birds with Sculpey!

Sculpey is available in individual blocks and mixed packs. A little bit goes a long way (the starter variety pack we're using now has lasted several months) and with patience and kneading, the colours can be mixed.

Best of all, it is widely sold at stores like Michaels, so you can print lots of "50% off any 1 item" coupons and head there as a family and triple or quadruple up on the Scupley packs.

Our 6 year old son carefully mixed the red and white clay to make the pink bird Leia. From idea to completion he made it all himself!

Sculpey starts off in bricks. Break off pieces in the colours of your choice and knead/roll them a bit to make it workable. Apparently, it can stain wood - so toss some wax paper or some other protection down on the surface.

Get to work - Sculpey assembles best as little balls or oblong shapes. The colours layer nicely too. Add these two features, and you have a perfect medium for Furious Avians or any other licensed characters of a cartoony nature.

We like using toothpicks to draw on the clay: great for poking pig noses. No fancy tools required.

Princess Leia Pink Bird, ready for the oven. Luke and a retracted lightsaber hang out in the background.

Place your completed figures on a cookie sheet (we use parchment paper, too) and bake for around 15 minutes at 275C. Watch the small parts (like beaks, and lightsabers - they can scorch). Let cool.

And you're done. Now, not only do your kids get licensed toys without paying licensed prices, they get a cool craft to be creative and fill some time too. Our 6 year old, pictured, has been near-solo-Sculpeying for a while now, but younger kids will need more parent help. The oven, obviously, is a mom-and-dad-only part of this too.

Here are some things we have Sculpified!

Pre-Star Wars Angry Birds, the originals were popular builds too.

Bad Piggies!

Have you got a novel way to make your own licensed toys? How about Sculpey - got any good ideas for that?

2 comments:

This is so cute! Kids love being able to make their own. My 12yo daughter is a polymer clay expert- making miniature food charms and turned it into a business. She has some mad sculpting skillz and does very well at craft sales, youtube video tutorials and even conducted a 6-week workshop for our local branch of our library. But enough proud-mama boasting. My tip was that the best buy for polymer clay is to watch for the 1/2 price polymer clay sales at Michaels- one coupon at a time takes a while to get several colours. But sometimes if she just needs a few colours, that's how we do it too, each family member with coupon in hand. However, if you can't wait for a sale- try Curry's Art Supply- their prices for many art supplies are well below Michaels and we appreciate the knowledge & availability of the staff there, too. Curry's carries Bake Shop poly clay, which is Sculpey brand, for $1.69 each (cheaper than sale price). And my expert daughter says it's practically the same. We only buy the sale clay at Michaels for the Premo (still Sculpey brand but it's their premium clay). And according to our resident expert Sculpey and Bake Shop are basically the same but Fimo is not quite as good- often too hard/dry to work with. Michaels also has a store brand called craft smart that she hasn't used b/c other users suggest that it's not great. Nice work on the angry birds!My guys also like to use online printables for licensed stuff- making 3D paper toys with their favourite characters.

Thanks for your great comment! Your daughter must be so creative and confident! It would take a special girl to run a 6 week workshop at 12. You must be so proud of her! Great clay tips: we just had a Curry's open in a nearby city, but haven't yet been there to check it out. Now we must!